Understanding how consumer products are applied in the consumption pattern and the fate of the materials in the end-of-life treatment systems plays an important part of our attempt to support maintaining limited/scarce resources in the industrial cycle. Such knowledge is the basis for our work related to re-design of products and optimization of end-of-life handling and treatment system.
With a special focus on electric and electronic products, we are developing a product family oriented concept for the design for optimal end-of-life performance.
Examples of research projects related to this area:
ReThink Resources
An innovation program on resource savings and recovery from improved product design focusing on the design for end-of-life performance of a variety of selected case product together with case companies. See www.rethinkresources.dk
INNOSORT: Innovative optimal sorting and recycling of waste
A large innovation consortium on waste sorting, our focus in the project being on end-of-life scenarios for electric and electronic products, including the development of an optimized approach to pre-sorting and enhanced reuse and material recovery and the elaboration of guidelines for good end-of-life performance of electric and electronic products. See http://innosort.teknologisk.dk/
E-waste characterization
The aim of this project was to sort and characterize a large number of electric and electronic equipment within small household appliances and IT equipment in order to understand their design and composition with respect to components and materials as well as the composition similarity between different models in the same product family as well as across product families.
Manure management technologies
The aim of this project was to do Life Cycle Assessments of alternative manure management technologies including slurry acidification, pellet production and more.
Interested in learning more? You are welcome to contact
Research manager for Product assessment & design Henrik Grüttner